Socialist Party Front Runner Knew of DSK Attack

In the midst of the Dominique Strauss-Kahn criminal charges and slander suits, it is easy to forget that the former IMF chairman was once a potential candidate for the French Presidency. Tuesday morning it was revealed that the mother of Tristane Banon, who filed charges for attempted rape stemming from an event in 2003, also had sex with Strauss-Kahn in 2000 while the two worked together. The Guardian is reporting that the mother also revealed that Francois Hollande, the current front-runner for the Socialist Party's Presidential bid in 2012, knew about the allegations that Strauss-Kahn attempted to rape Ms. Banon in 2003. She also suggested that it was Hollande who advised her daughter not to file criminal charges against Strauss-Kahn immediately after the attack. Hollande will reportedly be questioned by police to see how exactly much he knew about the attempted rape.

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Connor Simpson is a former staff writer for The Wire. His work has appeared in Business Insider and City Lab.